A list of Life Survival Tips to Know Before College, in no particular order:
1. Get a Part-Time Job That Provides Food.
While attending college, my friend worked in the cafeteria and got to grab a meal every shift. I signed up for the dorm safety team and was paid in a small deal plan. I also worked at a nearby restaurant that allowed us a meal every shift. My cousin worked at a sports equipment store that provided lunch for their employees.
If you can find a job that will help you eat for free, that is one less money thing to worry about.
2. Take Care of Your Car
The 2 things my parent still paid for when I went away to college was my cell phone bill and car insurance. The rest was up to me.
I was driving over 1,000 miles a month for an internship. Being a broke and unaware college student, I didn’t get regular oil changes. By my sophomore year, the car had major transmission issues from lack of care and died on me, leaving me to ride the bus. Take care of your car. AAA or other road side assistance programs are a lifesaver.
3. Bank Overdraft Fees Can Really Mess You Up
My bank tried to “help me” by ensuring any purchases that went over the amount in my account would still process. Through this help, my account would then be in the negative AND I’d get a $35 overdraft fee for every purchase I made.
A $5 Jamba Juice and a $3 soft pretzel at the mall one day quickly became a $78 dollar snack. ($5+$3+$35+$35=$78!)
Make sure to keep track of your spending.
4. The Freshman 15 Is Real
Between dinners with new friends, cafeteria lunches, and trying to find the perfect comfort food for studying, young adults out on their own can easily pack on the extra pounds.
Make sure to keep an eye on what you are eating. Always include a fruit or vegetable. And make sure to get in a few minutes of exercise as often as you can.
5. Create Written Rules With Roommates
If you’re living with roommates, which most college students and young adults are to save money (Check Out My House Hacking Post) make sure to have a written set of house rules.
These should include cleaning tasks, financial contributions, and social/party hours. You’ll all know who is supposed to do what and can hold each other accountable if need be.
6. You Can Still Apply For Scholarships and Grants While In College
Many people spend their senior year of high school dutifully applying for college scholarships. But once you actually get into college, most people just take what they already have and work with it. But there are still scholarships and grants out there that you can continue to apply for while attending college.
Make friends with people in the financial aid office and find out about scholarships or grants that often go unclaimed, just because no one knows to apply for them.
Some people can actually receive more scholarship money than their tuition costs. They are able to use those dollars towards other things like rent, food, or even in some cases, building a savings account for after college. (How to Pay For College Debt Free Part 1 & Part 2)
7. Open an IRA As Soon As You Have Earned Income
Young adults often start working while in college or shortly after and have earned income. But most part-time jobs don’t offer a retirement fund. Many companies don’t offer access to their 401k funds until you’ve been with them for over a year!
Start investing for your future now and open an IRA (Individual Retirement Account). You control the fund and can put in as much or as little as you want from each check (Up to the annual federal limit). Even if you can only contribute $20 a month, that is money that can continue to grow over your entire lifetime! (Super Simple Investing)
8. Fill Out The FAFSA Every Year
The FAFSA allows you to access financial aid at your chosen school. It needs to be filled out every year, from your senior year in high school. It is best to fill it out as soon as your parents file taxes in the spring as most grants are first come first served. (FAFSA Site)
9. The Difference Between Federal Grants vs Federal Loans
Grants are like scholarships and do NOT need to be paid back. Loans need to be paid back. When you first enter your college career, you will most often be offered more grants. As you get closer to graduation, your offered grants tend to go down and more loans will be offered.
Make sure to carefully read the terms of your financial aid offers to avoid unnecessary loans.
10. Not Every Career Requires a College Degree
As information and training are more widely offered online, there are fewer and fewer careers that actually require a college degree. Many professions can quickly be started with a few simple certification classes.
Obviously, becoming a doctor, lawyer, or other such careers will require a college degree, and then some. But for things like business, coding, or other technology degrees, there is so much information available for free. Spend some time studying (books, YouTube, courses (like Udemy), certifications) and start building your experience portfolio on places like Fiverr.
11. Take Advantage of Your Guidance Counselor
Instead of fretting about what classes you need to take in order to finish your degree on time, make an appointment and stop by your guidance counselor’s office.
Within 15 minutes, my guidance counselor was able to write out the exact classes I needed to take each term in order to graduate on time. He even noticed that if I were to add just 2 more classes, I could graduate with a double major.
12. Choose a Profitable Career
Taking out $80,000 in student loans to get a career that pays $50,000 the first year, just does not make sense.
If you’re going to go to college, make sure you choose a school and degree that will allow you to succeed upon graduation.
Keep your student loans below the estimated first-year salary of your chosen field. And make sure your chosen degree will actually allow you to make money. Following your passion is great, but if you’re going to spend thousands of dollars to learn something, you should make sure it pays well.
13. Companies Prefer Experience Over Education
Classroom knowledge is great and all, but most companies want you to have real-world experience.
Make sure to sign up for internships. Work part-time at companies you admire. Get real-world experience in your field and build your resume so that when you graduate, you can hit the ground running.
14. Learn How to Build a Budget
Money comes in and money goes out. If you don’t tell it where to go, you will run out of money way before your next paycheck comes in.
Build an Emergency Fund and create Expected Expenses Accounts to ensure you always have the money you need. Educate yourself about money by reading awesome blogs like this, books, podcasts, etc.
Track how you spend and save. M1 Finance offers some great free tools.
15. Don’t Be Afraid to Suffer a Bit
Your early 20s are usually a time free from children, committed relationships, and many of the time zaps that suck your energy later on. Take this time to let life suck a little bit now in order to relax later on.
- Work some OT to earn extra income. (And invest it)
- Build a Side Hustle to get extra income and experience
- Live with roommates to save on rent (And work other forms of House Hacking)
- Sign up for extra classes, committees, or volunteer work to make valuable social connections (Increase Your Income)
- Keep your expenses low as your income increases. Money invested early in life will have more time to grow, allowing you to become Financially Independent and potentially Retire Early (What is Financial Independence?)
16. Take Advantage Of Budget Travel
At 20, sleeping on a friend’s sofa, flying redeye flights, and eating sketchy street food is easy. If you have the travel bug, take advantage of this time in your life to buy those cheap tickets and couch surf your way around a new place.
It may not be glamorous, but you will create experiences to last a lifetime that might be much harder to do when you’re older. (Frugal Travel Tips)
17. Spend Your Money On What’s Important And Forget The Fluff
Clubbing, expensive furniture, brand name clothes, they’re all unnecessary expenses. Trying to keep up with what other people are doing instead of what’s important to you will only decrease your future wealth and leave you feeling empty now.
If something frivolous really brings you joy, make sure to save up for it and pay cash. But also make sure you are saving for your future first.
18. Pay Yourself First
For every dollar you earn, make sure a portion of it goes towards your savings and retirement investments before you spend money on anything else.
Put at least 10% of your earned income towards your future. If you really want to retire early, aim for 50%.
19. Don’t Be Too Proud to Get The Help You Need
Paying for tuition, rent, books, car maintenance, etc. It can all be a lot for someone who is just starting out and doesn’t have much money. Don’t be too proud to get help if you need it.
Things like food stamps and food pantries are there to keep people fed. If you are down to your last $10 for the month and have to decide between food or gas to get to work/class, go check out your local church or food pantry. No one should live on ramen noodles. And skipping meals will not help your grades. Be grateful for the help and make sure to give back what you can when your situation is better.
20. Make Sure to Build An Emergency Fund
Having an emergency fund will allow you to pay for real emergencies instead of putting them on credit cards and digging yourself into a bigger hole. Start small with just a few hundred dollars or $1,000 if you can get there. Keep it in a savings account (preferably high yield). Don’t touch it unless you have a real emergency.
As you save more, you should begin to build expected expenses accounts for expected “emergencies” like a flat tire, medical bill, or annual insurance bills.
21. Stay Away From Debt
Credit Card companies love to get new adults, out on their own for the first time, to open their cards. They will offer free gifts and make it easier to spend money you don’t have. Don’t fall for their traps.
If you really want to open a credit card to help build your credit, make sure you do it on your terms. No annual fee, and decent rewards (cashback or points you would actually use). And PAY IT OFF EVERY SINGLE MONTH. Never carry a balance on a credit card!
22. Know How to Handle Yourself In An Emergency
Learn basic life skills and preparation:
- How to change a tire (but also have roadside assistance like AAA or through your car insurance)
- Keep food, water, and blankets in your car if you’re going to be in a cold area
- Keep food and water in your home for emergency preparedness. Something like a hurricane, earthquake, tornado, flood, or even a water main break or a car hitting a pole could knock out power and water for who knows how long.
- Learn basic CPR and First Aid
- Learn how to swim, if you don’t know already (I am constantly surprised by how many adults do not know how to swim and literally grew up on an island)
- Know how to start a fire with matches
- Understand how to turn on and off water, electricity, and gas in your house
What would you add to this list? Leave a comment below!